Reporting Trend News

KPMG survey results

A new survey on the global mining industry from business advisory firm KPMG concludes that stakeholders of these firms may still not be getting the full picture. The study shows that while the industry’s reporting sets a good example to other industrial sectors, problems still arise over accurately benchmarking company performance.

The survey, which included results from 50 mining companies including companies from outside the traditional mining centres of Australia, Canada South Africa, the United Kingdom and the United States, found different reporting trends between companies from established vs. emerging mining countries. Two of the most significant differences were in providing reserve and resource information and disclosing remuneration. Around 90% of the companies in traditional mining bases provided these disclosures, whereas less than 20% of the companies in the emerging category did so.

Other differences of the two groups pertained to corporate governance and risk assessment. All of the companies in traditional mining bases disclose their corporate governance practices in some form, in comparison to 50% of the companies within emerging nations. In addition, 95% of the companies surveyed in traditional mining centres reported the existence of a formal risk assessment process, which contrasts starkly with only 8% of companies in emerging nations.